Minister of Housing, Utilities, and Urban Communities, Sherif El-Sherbiny, reviewed the achievements of the Central Agency for Reconstruction in 2024, an entity affiliated with the ministry. The agency has successfully completed 37 diverse projects, including roads, services, utilities, and housing, with a total cost of EGP 1.068bn. These initiatives align with the ministry's efforts to enhance the quality of life and provide adequate housing for citizens. El-Sherbiny noted that the projects include 17 road projects covering a total of 172.6 km, which cost EGP 702.7m EGP; 16 utility and service projects at a cost of EGP 285.7m EGP; and 4 housing projects totaling EGP 79.5m. Mahmoud Nassar, Head of the Central Agency for Reconstruction, elaborated on the road projects, which included the upgrading and paving of internal roads in the Seventh District of Ismailia and the Salam area in Ismailia's Second District. Additionally, the projects involved constructing a pedestrian tunnel beneath the railway line in Al-Nahda District, Kafr Saqr Center, Sharqia; upgrading the Qada'a Abu Masoud Road; paving the Al-Falahah Road in Kafr Saqr Center, Sharqia; improving the (Al-Saharah – Abu Shalabi) Road leading to the Abu Karasi'a junction in Faqous Center and City, Sharkia; and building a vehicular bridge over Bahr Abu Al-Akhdar in Minya Al-Qamh Center, Sharkia. Nassar also highlighted the development of roads in Matrouh, including the second sector west of Matrouh, and the paving of roads in Halayeb and its surrounding villages. Additional work included paving the first phase of the Sidi Salem/Sheikh Shazly Road in Marsa Alam, constructing and upgrading the Port Said-El Manzala Road from the Shadir Azam Bridge checkpoint to the edge of Port Said's administrative borders, and building a pedestrian bridge over the railway crossing as part of a vehicular overpass project in Mallawi City, Minya. Other road projects involved paving a road connecting Al-Khilwa Mosque to the (Akhmim/Sohag) Road in Sohag and expanding and upgrading the Middle Road, part of the Assiut/Sohag Road, which runs from the Kom Al-Arab crossing in Tahta City to the entrance of Tuhfa City in western Sohag. The projects also included constructing and upgrading main roads in the village of Mit Assas, Samannoud Center, Gharbia Governorate, as well as building a bridge over Al-Qasid Canal in Qahafa Center, Tanta, Gharbia, and another bridge over Al-Qasid Canal at the entrance to the Mahalla Road in Tanta, Gharbia. Nassar also mentioned utility and service projects, which included upgrading the Sultan Al-Mutahabin Mosque in Cairo; constructing an underground water tank with a capacity of 200 cubic meters in the village of Qatia in Bir Al-Abd City, North Sinai; renovating and upgrading the Directorate of Finance building in North Sinai; establishing a community center in the village of Jafjafa, Al-Hasana Center, North Sinai; and providing electricity to the Daghanja settlement in Al-Hasana City, North Sinai. Other projects included establishing a palm sapling nursery and constructing a 25x25m nursery with two greenhouses in Tor Sinai, South Sinai, digging two wells to serve this nursery, and conducting electrification work for water-lifting stations Nos. 1, 2, 3, and 4 along the Wadi Feiran axis in Saint Catherine City. These initiatives are part of the comprehensive development programs in South Sinai, totaling EGP 32m. Additionally, electricity has been connected to four Bedouin settlements in Al-Suheimi and the new Arab Al-Aleqat settlement in Ras Sedr, South Sinai. Other completed works include improving street lighting on internal roads in Qantara East Center and City (Phase 1) in Ismailia, constructing University City Building No. 6 (W) and Building No. 7 (Z) in the New Valley, providing a deep submersible pump for the Ard Al-Malik well in the New Valley, and digging three irrigation wells in the village of Gourmashin in Paris, New Valley. The housing projects include four initiatives: the construction of a Bedouin village comprising 24 houses in Sidi Barani, Matrouh; the development of Block 21 in the First Neighborhood, consisting of 52 housing units in Cairo; the construction of 50 Bedouin houses in the village of Al-Qasr in the Bahariya Oasis, New Valley; and the building of 25 fully serviced Bedouin houses in the village of Al-Zahir in Sheikh Zuweid Center, North Sinai.
